FSFE Receives Theodor Heuss Medal

The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) has received the Theodor Heuss Medal for 2010.

The Theodor Heuss Foundation stressed in giving the medal that the FSFE earned it "through new strategies in demonstrating cooperative values and by acting responsibly for a fairer world." The politically unaffiliated foundation has been granting the renowned medal since 1965 for special services rendered for democratic engagement and civic courage in remembrance of Germany's first federal president (1949-1959), Theodor Heuss. Karsten Gerloff, FSFE president, commented, "Free Software is an indispensable component of a free society in the digital age. It ensures equal access to the information society for everyone."

Georg Greve and cofounder Bernhard Reiter brought the FSFE to life in November, 2000. As Greve responded in gratitude to receiving the medal, "We founded the Free Software Foundation Europe to serve as an independent organisation, fighting for the freedom of society in the digital age. Our work is both about freedom from surveillance and monitoring as well as about freedom for personal initiative in all its forms."

This column looks into projects and current affairs in the world of free software from the perspective of the GNU Project and the FSF. In this issue, we take a look behind the drapes at the FSFE Annual General Meeting.